The London Eye, Millennium Wheel, London
2 2 Share TweetThe London Eye (Millennium Wheel), at a height of 135 meters (443 ft) it is the largest Ferris wheel in Europe,
The Merlin Entertainments London Eye (known more simply as The London Eye, and also known as the Millennium Wheel), is the largest Ferris wheel in Europe, and has become the most popular paid tourist attraction in the United Kingdom, visited by over three million people in one year.
At the time it was erected in 1999 it was the tallest Ferris wheel in the world, until it was surpassed in may 2006 by the Star of Nanchang (160 m), and then the Singapore Flyer (165 m) on 11 February 2008. However it is still described by its operators as “the world’s tallest cantilevered observation wheel” (as the entire structure is supported by an A-frame on one side only).The London Eye is located at the western end of Jubilee Gardens, on the South Bank of the River Thames in London, England, When I was shooting the wheel for this location it was a Saturday day and therefore very very busy, the queue was extremely long and I neither had the time or patience to queue and experience the ride, but looking back now I do regret no going on as the views I could of captured with my Lc-a and wide angle lens may have been incredible as the day was pretty stunning and the clouds captured in Fuji Velvia and Provia came out perfectly.
The wheel carries 32 sealed and air-conditioned egg-shaped passenger capsules, each capsule representing one of the London Boroughs. Each capsule holds 25 people, who are free to walk around inside the capsule and peer out and enjoy the views, although there is seating provided. It rotates at 26 cm (10 in) per second (about 0.9 km/h or 0.6 mph) so that one revolution takes about 30 minutes. The wheel does not usually stop to take on passengers, as the rotation rate is slow enough to allow passengers to walk on and off when moving at ground level. It is however stopped to allow disabled or elderly passengers time to embark and disembark safely if needed.
The wheel was designed by architects David Marks, Julia Barfield, Malcolm Cook, Mark Sparrowhawk, Steven Chilton, and Nic Bailey and was formally opened by the then Prime Minister, Tony Blair on 31 December 1999, (although it was not opened to the public until March 2000 because of technical problems, classic British workmanship ha).
By July 2002, 8.5 million people had ridden the Eye. Therefore Lambeth Council agreed to plans to make the attraction permanent as it originally only had planning permission for 5 years. And by the 5th June 2008 it was announced that 30 million people had ridden the London Eye,
Its clear to see that the London Eye has done for London what the Eiffel Tower did for Paris, not only does it give it an international symbol, but lets people climb above the city and look back down on it. It’s not just for specialists or rich people, but everybody and that’s the beauty of it, its public and accessible, and it is in a great position at the heart of London, which is why it’s perfect for a Lomolocation.
I hope you enjoyed reading this and liked the gallery, please leave comments and visit my lomohome sometime.
Thank you.
written by spendospend on 2009-11-16 #places #wheel #london-eye #location #london #velvia #provia #xpro #lc-a-race #urban-adventure #millennium
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